


Impromptu rest

by NoonoosKitchen



Series: Shukitashu canapés [27]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: M/M, Pre-Relationship, Yusuke's birthday, sweet pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:35:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29030277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoonoosKitchen/pseuds/NoonoosKitchen
Summary: Planetariums aren’t only great to experience the wonders of the universe.
Relationships: Kitagawa Yusuke/Kurusu Akira, Kitagawa Yusuke/Persona 5 Protagonist
Series: Shukitashu canapés [27]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1615258
Comments: 4
Kudos: 30





	Impromptu rest

**Author's Note:**

> This oneshot is tied to my last entry for Yusuke's birthday event ( [ Day 7, Free day ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28912626/chapters/71252937) ). I suggest you read it beforehand so that you can grasp the whole story.

Anyone who looks at the black-haired boy wouldn’t say he gives off a cheerful vibe, he looks more serious and disinterested than anything else. That couldn't be further from the truth though. Akira’s so excited he almost forgets he needs to return the book about Milady to the library before he leaves school. Morgana had decided to stay home today, saying that the grey clouded sky wasn’t really inviting and that he prefered to stay in the warm interior of Leblanc. As such, Akira doesn’t have to worry about any feline tagging along for his ‘not-date’ with the young artist.

Umbrella firmly gripped on his right hand and school bag on the left, he quickly walks to the train station before the sky has time to drop any rain and boards the train bound to Ikebukuro. The ride takes a bit long since he has to stop in Shibuya first, so when he gets there Yusuke’s already waiting for him, shielding his lean body from the cold rain with a disposable umbrella from the convenience store. With a gentle curve of the lips Akira approaches him, seeking refuge under the artist’s umbrella.

“Sorry, did I take long?”

Yusuke shakes his head. “Not at all, I just arrived here recently. Shall we go in?”

Tickets paid, they go inside. Since they’ve come on a weekday the place is fairly empty and they’re free to choose whichever seat they prefer. With their constant visits they slowly began to cherish a certain pair, and luckily for them they are available this time around too. Once they’ve settled, they comfortably lie against the cushioned seats and have a light conversation over whispers as they wait for the show to start. At some point, their chatter runs out and they just stay in silence, basking in each other’s company.

It’s in these moments that Akira’s heart flutters with delight, the feeling of acceptance and care overwhelming him so he’s sure one day the butterflies in his stomach will fly up his throat and escape, making the whole world see just how deep his feelings for Yusuke are.

As he keeps desperately trying to calm his heart down, the lights of the room dim and the show finally starts. A very familiar voice starts explaining once again the story they know by heart, constellations appearing in the counterfeit stars of the ceiling. With the room dark as the night and the stars dancing above him, Akira’s vision begins to blur as the repetitive voice of the recording encourages his eyes to close. As excited as he’d been before, the exhaustion of school and thievery catch up to him in his moment of respite and lull him to sleep.

It’s with the sound of footsteps exiting the chamber once the show is over that he wakes up again. He opens his eyes in a flash, realising what had happened and immediately feeling bad for falling asleep. He goes to look at his right, apology ready to leave his lips, and finds his eyes widening in surprise at what he finds. Yusuke is sleeping as well, eyes closed and gently breathing, much more soundly than he’d been. Now that he thinks about it, it did strike him as strange when Yusuke stayed silent for more than half the show. For as many times as they had seen it, he always found a new aspect to comment upon.

Akira observes him, suddenly hyper-aware of all his movements since he doesn’t want to interrupt the artist’s rest. He guesses that this sudden nap was probably caused by Yusuke’s general bad habits of taking care of himself. Akira wishes he could let him rest, but the lights have already turned on and the staff has entered the room to clean and make sure everybody has left. Reluctant, Akira reaches his hand out and places it on the artist’s shoulder, gently shaking him.

“Yusuke… Yusuke, wake up. We need to leave.”

The other stirs, his brow slightly furrowing when his rest is interrupted. Akira tries shaking him again, and Yusuke’s eyes finally start to open as he grumbles.

“Sorry… but we need to leave.”

Still shaking away the lingering traces of sleep they leave the planetarium, the rain pouring with more intensity than before.

“I appreciate that you accompanied me today, Akira, it was very kind of you,” Yusuke says as he begins to open his umbrella.“I wish to go to the convenience store to buy some candy, so please go on ahead.”

Seeing him wanting to leave so suddenly, Akira slightly paniks and reaches out to grab his wrist. “W-wait!” The artist is startled by the unexpected touch, but stops in his tracks nonetheless. Akira internally curses his desperation as he tries to calm himself down and speak again. “Actually… There’s a nice cafeteria around here, and I thought maybe you would like to go? It’s still pretty early to go home anyways.”

“Ah… That sounds lovely, but I’m afraid I’ll have to refuse. I have no spare change on my person at the moment-”

“Don’t worry, it’s on me.” Reassuring him, Akira opens his umbrella and steps into the rain. “Let’s go?” He asks Yusuke with an easy smile.

Yusuke smiles back at him and nods, following Akira down the street as both walk side by side down the empty streets.

Akira guides him around, secretly smiling because his plan was successful. Of course he knew it’s Yusuke’s birthday today, and of course he wanted to do something special. That’s part of the reason why he felt so bad when he fell asleep during the planetarium show, what a great start to their ‘not-date’... But oh well, Yusuke slept too so he guesses it's ok. He still has plenty of time to make up for it.

It’s rare for them to visit any cafés besides Leblanc, and not knowing his way around the city beyond Shibuya, Akira turned to an expert for a good recommendation. Thankfully, Ann seemed to know of a wonderful place very close to the planetarium, so that’s where they’re headed.

Just like she had described it, the establishment is beautiful, cozy and filled with many different types of cake. A waiter seats them on a table next to the wall, framed by two large windows and with a full view of the café. The same person asks for their order, and both decide to get just plain black coffee. That done, the waiter leaves them be and tells them to begin whenever they want.

“Begin… What, exactly?” Yusuke asks once the waiter’s out of earshot, confused.

“This place is a cake buffet. You can eat as many desserts as you want,” Akira replies, nervously looking around his bag. “Before we start though… Here.” He places in the middle of the table a rectangular shape wrapped in dark brown paper, decorated with a small bow on top. “I hope you like it, happy birthday Yusuke.”

The artist blinks a few times, looking at the gift but making no motion to take it. “You… you knew it’s my birthday?”

“Of course,” Akira replies, feeling how his face begins to heat. “I don’t know much about papers and all of that, so I asked the clerk for help… At least it should be ok for doing pencil sketches?”

Still somewhat bewildered, Yusuke reaches for the present and carefully unwraps it, revealing a hardcover notebook with beautiful camellias in full bloom engraved on the cover. The gasp Yusuke makes is loud enough to make some of the other customers turn their way.

“This… Akira, this is a wonderful gift,” he says, his lips curling into a wide smile as he moves the notebook closer to his face to examine it better. “I don’t know what to say besides thank you, it’s all so sudden... I promise to cherish it,” he adds as he passes some of the pages to examine their girth. In doing so, the pages loosen and suddenly something falls from between them. A bit surprised, Yusuke grabs the piece of hard cardboard that’s fallen into his lap and looks at it. The cardboard is rounded at the top though it has a flat bottom, a set of dates and times written all around the edge and with a gap in the very middle that shows a collection of stars and constellations. It’s the first time Yusuke’s seen anything like it. “What… is this?”

“It’s a star wheel. It helps you see what stars were in the sky in certains days. Here,” Akira begins to explain, reaching across the table to grab the wheel. “See the dates and the hours marked on the sides? So if you turn it… Let’s say, January 28th at 10 pm… See that the stars on the little window move? These will be the ones in the sky today.”

“That is… fascinating,” Yusuke replies, eyes wide and mouth agape, examining every little detail on the gift he just received. “I recognise many of these names from our visits to the planetarium. And their shapes too. Oh, this is magnificent!!” The happiness and gratefulness are palpable on his voice, and reflected on his beaming face as well. “Thank you so very much, Akira.”

“I’m glad you like it,” he replies, twisting some locks of hair on his fringe in a shy impulse. Before the situation can get any more embarrassing, he stands up. “Ok, time for cake.”

For starters, they get only a couple of samples on their plates, choosing on more simple flavours before they get back to their seats where their coffee is already waiting. As they begin to eat, Yusuke encourages Akira to voice his opinions about the cakes, and with the excuse to make the explanations more enlightening with first hand experience, they end up sharing the cakes and eating from each other's dishes. Round two begins shortly after, and Akira’s happy to see Yusuke enjoying himself, determined to try every cake available in the shop. Seeing Yusuke’s delighted face at eating delicious food is wondrous, his cheeks round and full of cake and some smears of cream in the corner of his mouth. Everything’s going so well that Akira’s surprised when Yusuke locks eyes with him, his previous cheerful expression diminishing slightly.

“This is the first time I’ve eaten cake for my birthday,” he confesses in a soft murmur, his eyes quickly going back to his half eaten lemon cake.

Akira knows the implications of his words, and even though he feels a painful jab on his chest, he smiles wide. Things are different now. “You can knock yourself out today, eat all the overdue cake.”

Yusuke nods at his words, his good mood apparently back, and digs back into his desserts. On his part, Akira decides to take a small break to watch him and observe his surroundings. The food is great, the coffee is too, and the place is very pretty. Ann’s advice was magnificent. As he looks around, Akira notices the rest of the customers are mostly couples chatting and sharing cakes just like they are. The realisation makes Akira feel a bit giddy, and he sighs, feeling very accomplished.

Several times he tries to focus back on the cakes, but as much as he wants to, he finds himself more attracted to his crush’s face, the shadow his long lashes cast on his high cheekbones and the gentle curve of his lips. It may be because of his lovesick heart, or maybe because of Yusuke’s ethereal beauty, but Akira finds the sight before him much more mesmerising than any of the wonders of the universe. He is so entranced by the warm feelings in his chest that he fails to notice the shy glances Yusuke keeps shooting his way.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading, and this time for reals, happy birthday my dear Fox!! <3
> 
> I recently reactivated my  [ twitter ](http://twitter.com/nature_check) account, so if you’d like to see updates for future fics or general Yusuke love talk, feel free to follow!
> 
> PS: I know that in the vanilla timeline Akira was in juvie during Yusuke’s birthday, but please humour me this once, won’t you dear readers?


End file.
